Ratatouille . . . the movie . . . and a recipe worth trying!

Dear Friends and Followers,

Gourmet Girl Gail here. Ratatouille was a comedy with great taste, and I would encourage you to see it if you haven’t already done so. It won the Oscar in 2008 for best animated feature film of the year. I mean, who wouldn’t love a film about a rat named Remy who dreams of becoming a great French chef and whose passion for cooking turns the culinary world of Paris upside down? It’s definitely a Gourmet Gal kind of movie! After all, we’re trying to turn camping cuisine on its head. “No more weenies and beans” has become a kind of motto of ours.

Movie aside, Denise and I held a demo a few weeks ago at the Garden Market on Santa Claus Lane in Carpinteria, California, with our delicious cast iron ratatouille recipe. It was June 4, aptly named June Gloom Day, and it was very overcast indeed. There were pop-up retailers, workshops, nature inspired crafts, art, shopping, and food and fun for everyone. Our gracious host, Tammy DeMatteo (owner of the Garden Market) gave us a great space to work in. Such a gorgeous setting!

To give credit where credit is due, the cast iron ratatouille is Executive Chef Denise’s creation, and it’s a great summer grilling recipe in our cookbook. The presentation is beautiful and may look time consuming to make, but it’s fairly easy to prepare this dish ahead of time.

Here’s Denise demonstrating the mandoline, which makes it super easy to slice the veggies.

Those of you who know us, we truly are gear heads when it comes to camping. Check out the Volcano Grill on which we cooked the ratatouille. It’s one mean cooking machine, as efficient as all get-out, and it’s collapsible and portable. Once the coals were hot enough, it took only a few minutes to hear the sizzling in the pan, and the dish was fully cooked and ready to serve in 20 minutes.

So why not WOW your friends and family with this outstanding, easy-to-make Oscar winning recipe at your next outing? Or in your own backyard? What’s not to love? Spread the good taste and you’ll be up for an award in no time!

Happy belated Summer Solstice from the Gourmet Girls. We hope you celebrated and had a grand time!